BWgovernment SUPPORT MONTSHO DURING ORDEAL - EXPERT A forensic psychiatrist, Tammi Mtungwa, says athletics star Amantle Montsho needs support from Batswana during her trying times. The former 400m Commonwealth and world champion was provisionally suspended after failing a doping test during the recent Commonwealth Games in Scotland. Her A-sample tested positive for banned stimulant methylhexaneamine. Some Batswana posted hateful comments on Montsho’s facebook page after it was announced that she had failed the test, prompting her to deactivate the account. Mtungwa said Montsho might be depressed, ashamed, or in emotional turmoil. “I can safely say she might not even have stepped out of her room since the news broke with fear of facing the world,” she said. She said the athlete’s deactivation of her facebook page could have been aimed at avoiding the abuse she was suffering from the public, adding that the abuse was uncalled for. Mtungwa said Montsho was already in a ‘vulnerable’ mental state after failing to get a medal at the games after going in as one of the favorites in her event. She said criticism must be measured as public backlash once drove a Belgian cyclist into trying to commit suicide after testing positive for a banned substance. The forensic psychiatry, further said Montsho would need a lot of psychotherapy to get her through this situation. “Let’s say her B Sample is negative, will all the people who abused her apologise, and how will she deal with everything knowing that her beloved nation never gave her the benefit of the doubt?” she asked. She said Montsho was Botswana’s daughter therefore people should be constructive in their criticism if she had indeed made a mistake. Mtungwa further said if found guilty, Montsho needed to heal from the abandonment issues, re-establish a sane and healthy self-image, fully discard the poisonous beliefs she had held for so long. She said Montsho should replace them with morally good beliefs, accept her actions, come clean to the people she had betrayed, and truly live with the consequences of what she had done. She added that historically, Methylhexaneamine had been used in nasal decongestant sprays, however because of its stimulant effects, it was increasingly being found in nutritional supplements and energy drinks. She said the products are for sale over the counter and can be readily obtained over the internet. Therefore she said athletes should be aware of the potential risks involved in taking any nutritional supplement and also noted that under the World Anti-Doping Code strict liability principle, athletes were ultimately responsible for any substance found in their body. She said this meant that even if a failed drug test resulted from a mistake or a contaminated supplement, the athlete would still be at fault. (BOPA)
Posted on: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 04:37:03 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015